Southfield, Lawrence Tech ready for groundbreaking of new softball field

SOUTHFIELD — The groundbreaking on a brand-new softball field created from a partnership between the city and Lawrence Technological University will commence this week.

Southfield and Lawrence Technological University will break ground on a softball field to be used by the Blue Devils from 11 a.m. to noon Friday, Sept. 19, at the site of the new field on the Southfield Municipal Campus, 26000 Evergreen Road.

“Southfield is proud to continue our long-standing partnership with Lawrence Tech,” Southfield Mayor Kenson Siver said in a prepared statement. “This new field will not only elevate women’s athletics at LTU, but it will also serve as a tremendous asset for our residents — opening the door to a wide range of sports programming, community activities, and recreational opportunities that strengthen pride and engagement across our city.”

The new field dates back five years when the university received word that MST Steel Corp.n President Richard Thompson wanted to make a $500,000 donation for a new softball field.

The school began work on the project when it ran into a bit of trouble; namely, that it didn’t have a location where the field could be built.

“We thought we were going to build this field on our campus, but we really didn’t have a spot to put the field on our campus,” said Kevin Finn, Lawrence Tech’s vice president for philanthropy and alumni engagement. “I had played on that softball field in the back of the city complex in a softball league, and I said, Man, maybe we could do something where we work together.’”

The two parties identified the field as something that would benefit all involved.

Southfield Business and Economic Development Director Rochelle Freeman said that the ability to create this all-turf softball field is an example of how collaboration can enhance the softball team’s facility while the city’s Parks and Recreation Department benefits by utilizing the field to create a better atmosphere for other sports that can be played on it, like flag football or Little League sports.

“The community will be able to enjoy the field, as well as Lawrence Tech women’s softball,” she said. “So it’s really a great product that’s going to enhance the entire community.”

“We all identified that field as something that could be renovated and basically has more multipurpose (uses), but also give our women’s softball team for the first time a home field they could play at, because all their games have been on the road,” Finn said. “Even though they play games on the road, they’re called home games. It’s not their field that we operate on.”

Along with LTU’s $500,000 donation, Southfield will be contributing over $2 million in funding. The university also will be contributing long term to the maintenance costs of the field going forward.

Finn stated that the costs of the project increased over time because they wanted to make sure the entire field was turf.

“It provides the most opportunity for us to use it,” he said. “Women’s softball at the college level play late February through early May. Now we probably won’t play any games there in February, but we will be out there in March. But what do we have in March? A lot of rain. So, you need fields that can drain, and if your backyard is like mine in March, it’s just a swamp, easily. And so having a turf, you know, rain can be a problem and you can’t play in a downpour, but it drains really quick and you can resume play. We started to work on that and priced it out and the city contributed.”

After the groundbreaking, the project is expected to be completed by the fall of 2026.